3 players KKR had the second-last bid for in IPL 2025 Auction who would have fit the team well ft. Mohammed Shami

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India v England - ICC Men's Cricket World Cup India 2023 - Source: Getty

When you are participating in an event as unpredictable as the IPL 2025 auction, there are bound to be some near misses for every team. There are players you want to sign but they end up with a price tag that is just above your budget, or you decide late at the moment that there are better players to come.

For defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), there were five players for whom they fell second in the bidding: Mohammed Shami, Rahul Tripathi, Phil Salt, Abhinav Manohar and Allah Ghazanfar. Although all players are excellent, for some, KKR could find good replacements, while for the rest, there might always be the feeling of "What if?" in the minds of the team management.

Below we have picked and analyzed three of the latter, players who'd have fit KKR like a glove if they'd managed just a few more bids.

#3 Abhinav Manohar

A big glaring weakness in the KKR lineup is the dearth of an extra Indian batter. They have lately been a team of more all-rounders than specialists but one Indian batter spot, someone excellent against spin, looks vacant in their squad.

Manish Pandey and Ajinkya Rahane are far from international teams and strugglers for domestic T20 sides, so competing for it is far from ideal. Luvnith Sisodia is another option but he's quite young and still unproven.

KKR bid a good sum of ₹3 crore for Karnataka batter Abhinav Manohar but that was their only attempt. SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH)'s ₹3.2 crore bid sealed it.

Manohar would have been fantastic for KKR. He can bat right from number three to number seven and hit big -- so, KKR could have slotted him at number four before their big hitters Andre Russell, Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh, or just after them to extend the tail and give the top-order more freedom.

Manohar, who was the second-highest run-scorer with an average of 84.5 avg and a strike rate of 196.51 in the Maharaja Trophy this year, would have been a perfect impact player and even an injury backup for Rinku and Ramandeep.

#2 Rahul Tripathi

You can be pardoned for having hopes for a KKR-Rahul Tripathi reunion when the franchise went up to ₹3.2 crore for him, only to be snatched by Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Tripathi would probably prove to be an excellent signing for CSK, like he'd have done at KKR in almost similar roles.

At KKR, he'd have fit in at number four/five, alternating with left-hander Venkatesh Iyer for the spot depending on match-ups and bridging the top four with the Russell-Rinku-Ramandeep trio using his dynamism.

Tripathi's game against spin and selflessness in attacking the bowlers would have suited KKR's new needs. Furthermore, he'd have also given KKR a backup wicketkeeper option where they would not be forced to play their 'keeper as an opener, the usual position for both Quinton de Kock and Rahmanullah Gurbaz.

Bringing him back, after the kind of memories he gave KKR in worse times, would've been special for the team and the player.

#1 Mohammed Shami

Just like Tripathi, KKR came inches close to bringing back Mohammed Shami to his home -- he only played three games for the franchise in the IPL in 2013 but is a Bengal cricket legend. The emotional value of his signing would've been immense.

In the team, Shami would have replaced Vaibhav Arora and immediately taken up the role of the attack leader. He's not just an excellently skilled pacer with the ability to swing the ball in the powerplay and seam it all throughout the 20, but also someone who has not picked up less than 19 wickets in an IPL season since 2018.

In Mitchell Starc's absence, Shami would have taken KKR to another level. But now, thanks to a late last bid from SRH for ₹10 crore to beat KKR's ₹9.75 crore which was their first and last, he'd play for the Orange Army.

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Edited by Ankush Das
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